Valves for controlling the flow of finely-divided material from a hopper

ABSTRACT

A valve arrangement for tapping of various materials, particularly materials having a tendency to form arches or bridges in the lower portion of a flexible hopper includes two shutters capable of approaching one another in order to form a tight closure for the material. These shutters are formed from two fabric pieces which extend flexibly downwardly from the hopper and are mounted on two pivotal frameworks. The frameworks are connected to control arms. The invention can be applied to baking for example for the distribution of measured quantities of flour into a kneading-machine derived from a flexible hopper suspended from a balance.

States Patent Taupin Oct. 15, 1974 [54] VALVES FOR CONTROLLING THE FLOW 1,995,830 3/1935 Barnsby 150/4 FINELYJHVIDED MATERIAL FROM A 2,010,229 8/1935 Goff et a1.. 251/9 HUPPER gafiaa;j 292243150 50 oza eta. l. 56X [76] Inventor: Jean-Paul Taupin, Le Vivier 58 3,279,656 10/1966 Axtell ct a1. 222/183 Urzy, France Primar ExaminerRoben B. Reeves 22 Fl d: 10 .41,1972 Y 1 1e ec Assistant Examiner-Francis J. Bartuska PP 312,107 Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Clelle W. Upchurch Related US. Application Data [63] Continuation of SCI" N0. 44,687, June 9, 1970, [57] ABSTRACT abandoned A valve arrangement for tapping of various materials, particularly materials having a tendency to form Foreign Apphcatmn Pnomy Data arches or bridges in the lower portion of a flexible June 10, 1969 France 69.19198 hopper includes two Shutters capable of approaching one another in order to form a tight closure for the [52] U5. Cl 222/502, 222/528, 251/9 materiaL These Shutters are formed from two fabric [51] Int. Cl BGSd 47/20 pieces Which extend flexibly downwardly from the [58] Field Of Search 222/103, 181, 183, 185, hOpper and are mounted on two pivotal frameworks 222/406, 445, 446, 469 511, 527-532, 5 6, The frameworks are connected to control arms. The 503; 150/4 251/9; invention can be applied to baking for example for the 101; 294/71 distribution of measured quantities of flour into a kneading-machine derived from a flexible hopper sus- [56] References CEed pended from a balance.

UNITED STATES PATENTS 915,696 3/1909 Perry 6131. 4 8 Chums 4 Drawmg F'gures PATENIEDUCT 1 51m SHEET 10F 2 Inventor iorneyg JEAN-PAUL TAUPIN VALVES FOR CONTROLLING THE FLOW OF lFlNELY-DIVIDED MATERIAL FROM A HOPPER This is a continuation of application Ser. No. 44,687, filed June 9, 1970, now abandoned.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention.

The present invention relates to the control of granular or powdered materials, particularly materials of low density, such as flour, having a tendency to form arches or bridges.

2. Description of the Prior Art.

When it is desired to withdraw such materials from the bottom of a reservoir or a hopper, by opening a flap for example, the delivery takes place irregularly, the material flows poorly or otherwise falls in large masses. This arises from the tendency of the materials to com pact under the action of their own weight as soon as they are held up. It is always very difficult under these conditions to provide for regular flows with this kind of material and difficulties are met each time it is necessary to control the flow; in general the operator has to act to unjam the material manually.

The present invention seeks to facilitate the withdrawal of various materials from the bottom of a reservoir or from a hopper by means of a valve which allows the operator to readily provide a flow without a sudden stoppage and to control the delivery.

The invention can be applied to storage and dispensing devices comprising a flexible hopper or container or a hopper which is flexible at least in a lower part thereof.

Suspended flexible containers are used for temporary storage of materials from which distribution can be effected at any time to the place where the material is to be used.

In the case of flour for example, they may be formed by a simple frusto-conical sack of fabric tapering downwardly. Such sacks allow, in particular for the removal of air without dust proportional to the amount of refilling.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, there is provided a valve for tapping a material from a flexible hopper comprising two shutters movable towards and away from one another, in order, in the closed position to stop flow of the material, each said shutter comprising a piece of flexible material and a framework, the frameworks of the two shutters being pivotally connected, and control members connected to the frameworks for varying the relative positions of the shutters, the flaps forming extensions of the lower part of the hopper.

When the two shutters are abutting one another, they form a pocket filled with material from the lower part of the flexible hopper. When the two shutters are contrariwise substantially spaced from one another, the two pieces of flexible material flex with respect to the remainder of the hopper along a line joining the two pivot points of the frameworks; the two folds are maintained with the one opposite the other and forming a constriction at the bottom of the flexible hopper between the two pivot points; this constriction limits, or even prevents, completely the flow of material below it. Between these two extreme positions, in which the flow of material is reduced or eliminated, the operator can control the two shutters so that the material flows as desired. The flexibility of the hopper in conjunction with the movements of the operator, which movements are instinctively very rapid, ensures that the material is prevented from choking and forces it to flow without sudden stoppage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS An embodiment of such a valve which is very simple to manufacture and very easy to use will be described hereinafter in detail which will enable complete understanding of the construction, operation and uses; this description is given, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a. flexible hopper provided with a valve in accordance with the invention;

FIGS. 2 and 3 are elevations of this hopper illustrating its operation; and

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the frameworks of the valve.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT FIG. 1 shows a flexible fabric hopper 1 which is supported at its four corners 2 by hooks 3 from the platform 4 of a steelyard. At the center of the platform, a tube 5 enables refilling of the hopper l, situated below, until the desired weight is reached. The refilling is effected directly by the tube 5, the air leaving or escaping steadily through the pores of the fabric forming the hopper 1. Such an arrangement can be utilized at bakeries, for example for dispensing flour.

A hopper l is provided at its bottom with a valve 6 in accordance with the invention. permitting the dispensing of quantities of flour for refilling, for example, a kneading-machine.

The valve 6 comprises essentially two shutters 7 and 8 pivoted at two points 9 and 10 which can be moved apart or drawn together at will by means of control indication of the arrangement, the fabric piece 8' of the shutter 8 has been defined by a broken line joining the pivots 9 and 10.

Each fabric piece, such as 8', has on its free edges hems in which are threaded parts of one of the frameworks. The two frameworks of the shutters 7 and 8 are clearly shown in FIG. 4 after removal of the fabric pieces. Each of these frameworks comprises essentially two branches 16 and 17 forming between themselves an obtuse angle of about These branches take the form of steel rods bolted to one another by means of screwed threaded extremities and :a nut 18. Sleeves of foam resilient material 20 and 21 are mounted on these steel rods. The respective two free ends of the branches 17 of the frameworks are pivoted by tongues and a bolt 25. The axes of the bolts 23 and 25 are substantially common in order to allow for the movement of the two frameworks. These pivots lie in the region of the joints 9 and 10 of the fabric pieces 7' and 8' when the frameworks are in place.

Whei'e the base meets the remainder of the hopper,

I, the branches 16 of the two frameworks are approximately horizontal whilst the branches 17 are substantially vertical. The branches 16 are longer than the branches 17 and are extended from the side of the latter by arms 11 and 12 for controlling the shutters 7 and 8. These arms can be constituted by an extension of the steel rods forming the branches 16. In FIG. 4 it will be seen that one of the arms, 12, is slightly bent in order to avoid the end portions of the arms 11 and 12 forming control handles which do not come into contact when the two shutters are closed with respect to one another. The handle of the arm 11 includes a sleeve rotatable freely about the rod 27. An adjustable hook 28 is mounted on this sleeve perpendicularly to the rod 27 when the sleeve 26 is turned. When the two frameworks are brought together, the hook 28 can engage the rod 29 of the arm 12 in order to hold the two shutters in their closed position.

Because of the provision on the branches 16 and 17 with resilient sleeves 20 and 21, the two frameworks form a fiuidtight closure to the materials when they are pressed one against the other. The hook 28 is biased to a disengaged position by a spring 30. It is held in the disengaged position in opposition to the force of this spring by the resilient reaction of the foam rubber sleeves 20 and 21 on the framework.

The assembly of the frameworks in the fabric pieces 7' and 8' so that they constitute shutters, is effected by threading the branches l6 and 17 in hems provided for this purpose before the assembly step and the interconnection of the pivots of the frameworks.

The operation of the valve thus formed is illustrated by FIGS. 2 and 3. In FIG. 2 the valve is shown in the closed position. The material is stopped by the edges 13 and 14 in contact of the shutters 7 and 8, these edges in contact being constituted by the sleeves 20 and 21 of the two frameworks firmly applied against one another.

The releasing of this closure is effected by exerting a force tending to close arms 11 and 12 towards one another in opposition to the resilient reaction of the sleeves 20 and 21, which has the effect of freeing the hook 28 which is then retracted rearwardly by its return spring 30. It is then possible to space apart the two shutters 7 and 8 by working or acting upon the arms 11 and 12. The material which is contained in the closed pocket by the fabric pieces 7' and 8' of the base of the hopper l flows under gravity. But at the same time, the action of spacing of the shutters 7 and 8 from one another causes folding of the fabric along broken lines 32 and 33 for joining the pivots 9 and 10. The effect of these folds is constriction at the bottom of the hopper at the level of the broken line 9, 10, which is moreover further accentuated as the spacing of the shutters 7 and 8 is increased. In the position shown in FIG. 3, this spacing is such that the flow of the material is once again substantially stopped.

There are thus two positions for no flow or substantially no flow, that is when the arms 11, 12 are as close as possible together and on the contrary spaced by the maximum amount. However, in these two positions the blockage which is produced occurs at different heights. In the first case, in effect, the material is stopped by the edges 13 and 14 in contact of the shutters and in the other case by folds in the fabric pieces 7 and 8' at the level of the line 9, 10. Between the movement from one position to the other the material is constrained to flow. It is thus not possible for it to be compacted in one position and to remain so. It is by making use of this observation that an operator can control the gate by spacing apart more or less the arms 11 and 12 as a function of the flow of the material. Very soon, the control of flow is effected by the operator almost instinctively by the movement of the arms 11 and 12 and regular flow is produced which can be adjusted at will. Because of its regularity this flow gives rise to little dust. It is thus possible again to limit the formation of dust near the operator by providing a flap in front of the arms 17 of the framework. This flap will be constituted by a simple piece of fabric fixed to the hopper and forming a screen between the operator and the opening of the valve in the vertical plane.

A valve such as has just been described is simple and inexpensive to manufacture. It is extremely light and can be manipulated with ease. It can also be disassembled.

It should be understood that it is possible to provide modifications without departing from the scope of the invention, the essential effect provided by the latter being the provision of two no-flow conditions at different levels from the bottom of the hopper, between which it is possible to control or regulate the flow for withdrawal of material.

I claim:

1. A valve for controlling the flow of material from a flexible hopper comprising:

two flexible triangular shutter flaps which form extensions of the lower part of a hopper, said triangular flaps being substantially congruent, and two edges of each of said triangular flaps free to move toward and away from each other, framework associated with said flaps, said framework comprising a pair of elongate members, each one of said members respectively attached to one of said triangular flaps, each one of said elongate members having a plurality of arms, resilient foam sleeves on said arms, two of said arms having an included angle such that said arms and said included angle are substantially congruent with the free edges of a triangular fiap and their included angle, said arms attached to said edges of said' flaps by threading said arms in hems provided at said edges of said flaps so that upon bringing the arms together the edges of said flaps meet to prevent passage of material thereby, and the arms of said elongate members which are attached to said flaps are pivotally attached to each other at their ends,

and said elongate members having third arms comprising control means for varying the position of the shutter flaps.

2. The valve of claim 1, additionally comprising means for locking said shutters in a closed position.

3. The valve of claim 2, wherein the means for locking the shutters in a closed position comprises a hook pivoted on the third arm of one of said elongate members, said hook adapted to engage over the third arm of the other elongate member when the shutter flaps are in a closed position.

4. The valve of claim 3, additionally comprising a return spring for biasing said hook to retract said hook from engagement with said other arm.

5. The valve of claim 3, additionally comprising a sleeve rotatably mounted on the third arm of the elongate member having the locking hook thereon, said sleeve attached to said hook to pivot said hook on said arm.

6. The valve-of claim 1, wherein one of the two arms of each elongate member, which is attached to an edge of one of the triangular flaps, extends substantially horizontally and the other arm attached to the other edge of one of said angular flaps extends substantially vertically.

7. The valve of claim 1 wherein the elongate members are rigid rods and the third arms are rods adapted to be grasped by the hands.

8. A valve for controlling the flow of material from a flexible hopper comprising:

two flexible triangular shutter flaps which form extensions of a lower part of a hopper, said triangular flaps being substantially congruent with two edges of each of said triangular flaps being free to move toward and away from each other;

a framework associated with said flaps to form shutters, said framework comprising a pair of elongate members, each one of said elongate members having a plurality of arms, two of said arms having an included angle, such that said arms and included angle are substantially congruent with the free edges of a triangular flap and their included angle and attached thereto, the arms of said elongate members which are attached to the said flaps are pivotally attached to each other at their ends, said elongate members having third arms comprising control means for varying the position of the shutter flaps;

seals on said two arms which cooperate when said shutters are in a closed position and said elongate members are contiguous with one another;

and a sleeve rotatably mounted on the third arm of one of said elongate members having a hook attached thereto which is adapted to pivot on said arm and engage over the third arm of the other elongate member for locking said shutters in a closed position. 

1. A valve for controlling the flow of material from a flexible hopper comprising: two flexible triangular shutter flaps which form extensions of the lower part of a hopper, said triangular flaps being substantially congruent, and two edges of each of said triangular flaps free to move toward and away from each other, a framework associated with said flaps, said framework comprising a pair of elongate members, each one of said members respectively attached to one of said triangular flaps, each one of said elongate members having a plurality of arms, resilient foam sleeves on said arms, two of said arms having an included angle such that said arms and said included angle are substantially congruent with the free edges of a triangular flap and their included angle, said arms attached to said edges of said flaps by threading said arms in hems provided at said edges of said flaps so that upon bringing the arms together the edges of said flaps meet to prevent passage of material thereby, and the arms of said elongate members which are attached to said flaps are pivotally attached to each other at their ends, and said elongate members having third arms comprising control means for varying the position of the shutter flaps.
 2. The valve of claim 1, additionally comprising means for locking said shutters in a closed position.
 3. The valve of claim 2, wherein the means for locking the shutters in a closed position comprises a hook pivoted on the third arm of one of said elongate members, said hook adapted to engage over the third arm of the other elongate member when the shutter flaps are in a closed position.
 4. The valve of claim 3, additionally comprising a return spring for biasing said hook to retract said hook from engagement with said other arm.
 5. The valve of claim 3, additionally comprising a sleeve rotatably mounted on the third arm of the elongate member having the locking hook thereon, said sleeve attached to said hook to pivot said hook on said arm.
 6. The valve of claim 1, wherein one of the two arms of each elongate member, which is attached to an edge of one of the triangular flaps, extends substantially horizontally and the other arm attached to the other edge of one of said angular flaps extends substantially vertically.
 7. The valve of claim 1 wherein the elongate members are rigid rods and the third arms are rods adapted to be grasped by the hands.
 8. A valve for controlling the flow of material from a flexible hopper comprising: two flexible triangular shutter flaps which form extensions of a lower part of a hopper, said triangular flaps being substantially congruent with two edges of each of said triangular flaps being free to move toward and away from each other; a framework associated with said flaps to form shutters, said framework comprising a pair of elongate members, each one of said elongate members having a plurality of arms, two of said arms having an included angle, such that said arms and included angle are substantially congruent with the free edges of a triangular flap and their included angle and attached thereto, the arms of said elongate members which are attached to the said flaps are pivotally attached to each other at their ends, said elongate members having third arms comprising coNtrol means for varying the position of the shutter flaps; seals on said two arms which cooperate when said shutters are in a closed position and said elongate members are contiguous with one another; and a sleeve rotatably mounted on the third arm of one of said elongate members having a hook attached thereto which is adapted to pivot on said arm and engage over the third arm of the other elongate member for locking said shutters in a closed position. 